Posts Tagged ‘Hedgehog

Solomon recounts a story of a king who laid siege to a city. The wealthy king had a powerful army, but the city had a poor, wise man. The wise man came up with a plan that saved the city, even though they were outnumbered. Solomon’s point is that “wisdom is better than strength” (Ecclesiastes 9:16, NIV).

It reminds me of a proverb I read about in the book Good To Great by Jim Collins. There are two animals: a fox and a hedgehog. The fox is bigger and stronger than the hedgehog and tries a myriad of ways to eat the hedgehog. The hedgehog is small and easy prey for the fox. The hedgehog knows one thing – roll up in a ball. He may be small, but he wisely uses what he’s been given to live another day.

The point is to use what you’ve been given in a wise manner to overcome the obstacles, temptations and struggles in your life. Sometimes the answer or solution is the most obvious one – prayer. Don’t try to overcome your struggles on your own. You’ve been given the power of the Holy Spirit! Trust in the Lord with everything you’ve got and let Him lead you and guide you to safety. Let God protect you and your heart. Let God defeat your enemies. He’s given you what you need (His Word and His Spirit), so use the tools you’ve been given to overcome a formidable enemy. Victory is assured if you will use wisdom and the tools you’ve been given to seize it!

Ecclesiastes 9:13-18 (NIV)

I also saw under the sun this example of wisdom that greatly impressed me:14 There was once a small city with only a few people in it. And a powerful king came against it, surrounded it and built huge siege works against it.15 Now there lived in that city a man poor but wise, and he saved the city by his wisdom. But nobody remembered that poor man.16 So I said, “Wisdom is better than strength.” But the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are no longer heeded.

17 The quiet words of the wise are more to be heededthan the shouts of a ruler of fools.18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war,but one sinner destroys much good.